TEA Attendance Report Now due June 3rd

[Donald Razorduck]

This why I don't understand why cruise companies keep trying ports outside of Florida. Miami, Ft. Lauderdale, Canaveral...even Tampa seem like better vacation starting options. Maybe for people out west? There has to be a market.

Because the local markets are huge and in the case of Texas, the continued growth in these markets is staggering.

Galveston is expanding for RC and Walmart of the Seas and the New terminal just north of Kemah is now open with Norweigian using it maybe more now.

The Grand Texas park is not the answer to Texas' lack of a destination park and resort.

 

[jt04]

I'm willing to wager I'll be in my forties by the time anything Stars Wars related opens in DHS. Imagine all of the attractions and expansions UO will have created by the time anything SW opens.

Also laughing at the thought of Disney Springs having any effect on people visiting WDW.

I will get the last laugh. Per usual.

 

[Disneyhead'71]

What are you talking about? What does 8.3M blow past? All 3 of those parks have much greater attendance.

USJ just blew past DAK, DHS, and Epcot. It is now #5 worldwide. Only MK, TDL, DL, and TDS out draw them now.

 

[CaptainAmerica]

USJ just blew past DAK, DHS, and Epcot. It is now #5 worldwide. Only MK, TDL, DL, and TDS out draw them now.

Who cares? Certainly not Disney.

 

[Chef Mickey]

USJ just blew past DAK, DHS, and Epcot. It is now #5 worldwide. Only MK, TDL, DL, and TDS out draw them now.

I think those are less comparable because it's a totally different market. I've been to Tokyo Disney and can tell you it's almost all locals. Tokyo is such a big city, I don't think it's super fair to compare Universal in Tokyo to Orlando Disney parks.

Notably, the Disney parks in Tokyo are still outdrawing Universal.

You are comparing apples and oranges. When you compare similar markets, Disney wins again.

 

[SJN1279]

Disney doesn't even care that one Universal park just blew past DAK, DHS, and Epcot. Hakunamatata.

Orlando vs. Orlando, Japan vs. Japan, Cali vs. Cali.....Disney wins by blowout.

 

[WondersOfLife]

That's the beginning of the slowly evolving pattern of Universal forcing families into the Disney trip and then an Universal and the rest trip instead of a Disney and the rest model. It's overall good for Orlando as the Sentinel points out but Disney is stagnating and will more as families switch to the two separate trip model. We, as a family felt a bit disappointed we didn't hit Universal last trip and are breaking our 4 to 5 year visit model to hit Uni in 2017. That will be our first trip to Orlando without Disney being the primary focus. I really see Disney developing a lack of interest from the teen perspective where Uni isn't. We are typical, Mom and Dad with a son and a girl two and a half years apart and they are pre teens now, tell me what Disney is doing to lure them back compared to Universal. By the time Star Wars comes around they'll be in college. Disney is simply moving at too much of a slower pace. The effect will be more evident 5 years out than now.

Well said and better put than I.

 

[Disneyhead'71]

Who cares? Certainly not Disney.

Really? Having a competitors product leap frog 3 of your stalwarts in one move should at least raise an eyebrow.

But you're right. Disney probably doesn't even know Universal has a park in Japan.

 

[WondersOfLife]

To be fair...Avatar only has one movie out and 2 more on the way. The movies have also been delayed, which will work in the favor of the delayed Avatarland. The sequels will be significant when they hit, and regardless of storyline, the "world of Pandora" is what everyone wants to experience. As long as they spend the money to make it an amazing experience, we should have some good synergy's going with AK and the movie. I think it's way to early to say it will be a flop and that it won't be as popular as Harry Potter. It might not be since it isn't geared towards the teen crowd, but the land could still be a big hit.

I'm probably mostly just biased.. But I still don't believe that it will be nearly as popular as Harry Potter or Star Wars is. You never ever hear anything about the film, and when it first came out all I heard about the movie was that it was "over-rated"... Not to the extent of Frozen where it's over-rated but has a large fan base. It was just over-rated in general more so by critics than by the general public. Not technically a bad movie by any means. It was a great movie.. But I don't think it's up to par on popularity as say.. Harry Potter or The Hunger Games..

Again, re-organizing my thoughts on Avatarland.. I do think I'm very biased now that I think about it. But I'm also biased to the point that I'm sticking to this theory. xP

 

[maxairmike]

If that's what Potter did for USJ, imagine what Nintendo is going to do for that park. Frozen over there may cause a spike, but Nintendo...well, that should push USJ towards MK levels. Like, I wouldn't even want to be in the Osaka metro area kind of crazy.

 

[Chef Mickey]

Really? Having a competitors product leap frog 3 of your stalwarts in one move should at least raise an eyebrow.

But you're right. Disney probably doesn't even know Universal has a park in Japan.

This kind of tongue and cheek sarcasm is just garbage. "Disney probably doesn't even know Universal has a park in Japan."

I can tell you one thing...Disney may not make decisions you or I like, but they are not stupid. You don't become the most dominant force in entertainment by not knowing your competition and understanding the market.

If you want to have a real discussion, let's have one without the sarcasm. You're comparing apples and oranges. Perhaps it raises an eyebrow, but the success of Universal in Tokyo doesn't speak to the demise of Disney parks in Orlando, especially when the Tokyo Disney parks are performing better.

The fact Disney in Orlando is still wiping the floor with Universal despite allowing 3/4 parks to practically die in age, closings, and lack of refurbishments should actually make the folks at Universal quite scared. Imagine the numbers when Disney decides it needs to do some serious updating.

 

[NeXuS1000]

Regarding USJ... of course Disney notices, but I highly doubt we're looking at a scenario where anyone - Disney, Universal or anyone else - feels like the parks seriously competes across continents.

USJ is primarily competing with TD and DS. The WDW parks are primarily competing with USO and IOA. And DL and DCA are primarily competing USH.

Disney is not filled with braindead people. Of course big growth numbers are noticed and discussed, but people at WDW/TDO are more concerned with the IOA and USO numbers, as they should be, and I think the major growth spurt by USO is definitely noticed. However, I also think the fact that IOA has flatlined says something, i.e. that USO growth didn't improve IOA growth one bit, maybe even on the contrary.

All the projects going on right now - Avatarland and general DAK upgrades, the rumored DHS overhaul, and even DS are all attempts to combat Universal Florida. Whether or not you agree that it's enough, that's a different topic, but saying that Disney doesn't notice/care about the attendance numbers for their biggest competitors is just ignorant.

Personally, I think they should be most focused on the fact that MK is seeing close to a 50% attendance increase over the 3 other parks. That's very tangible growth potential for those parks, and with a good strategy, they should be able to narrow that gap significantly.

 

[devoy1701]

I'm probably mostly just biased.. But I still don't believe that it will be nearly as popular as Harry Potter or Star Wars is. You never ever hear anything about the film, and when it first came out all I heard about the movie was that it was "over-rated"... Not to the extent of Frozen where it's over-rated but has a large fan base. It was just over-rated in general more so by critics than by the general public. Not technically a bad movie by any means. It was a great movie.. But I don't think it's up to par on popularity as say.. Harry Potter or The Hunger Games..

Again, re-organizing my thoughts on Avatarland.. I do think I'm very biased now that I think about it. But I'm also biased to the point that I'm sticking to this theory. xP

Just a general question...when was the last time you watched Avatar?

We just rewatched the movie again last month (in our home theater in full 3-D and 5.2 Surround on a 110" screen) and it was GREAT! It left me wanting more of the story. To figure out what would happen next with the Na'vi since they repelled the RDA army. I might not have thought about the movie in 2 or 3 years, but I challenge you to watch the movie again and see if you don't think that with another movie or 2 the franchise could have some staying power.

 

[MerlinTheGoat]

I will get the last laugh. Per usual.

Well of course you will, per usual indeed. Though i'm really not sure why you would WANT more people to continue laughing at you...

On the subject of Disney's new shopping mall and absurd and self humiliating jt posts, here's some fun nostalgic rambling back from 4 years ago regarding the canned Hyperion Wharf concept-

http://forums.wdwmagic.com/threads/photos-a-look-at-hyperion-wharf-construction-progress.734952/
http://forums.wdwmagic.com/threads/dtds-marketplace-complete.732235/
http://forums.wdwmagic.com/threads/hyperion-wharf-any-news.832979/page-2#post-4883525
http://forums.wdwmagic.com/threads/so-is-the-hyperion-wharf-project-dead.763472/page-3#post-4632305
http://forums.wdwmagic.com/threads/so-is-the-hyperion-wharf-project-dead.763472/page-8#post-4640949
http://forums.wdwmagic.com/threads/so-is-the-hyperion-wharf-project-dead.763472/page-9#post-4640993

Just a general question...when was the last time you watched Avatar?

We just rewatched the movie again last month (in our home theater in full 3-D and 5.2 Surround on a 110" screen) and it was GREAT! It left me wanting more of the story. To figure out what would happen next with the Na'vi since they repelled the RDA army. I might not have thought about the movie in 2 or 3 years, but I challenge you to watch the movie again and see if you don't think that with another movie or 2 the franchise could have some staying power.

No offence as this is your opinion and everything. I've watched it again since release, saw it last year. The story is forgettable and boring, as are the characters. It's certainly not a bad idea for an immersive theme park experience given the lovely visuals (and they can just ignore the story there). But as a story driven franchise, i've no interest in seeing the sequels whatsoever. I've given the original movie three watches, and it gets less interesting every subsequent viewing (it wasn't interesting the first time). The second and third viewings were more attempts to see if there was anything worthwhile besides the visuals, nothing convinced me of this and i've now no desire to re-experience it again.

As i've said before in topics regarding Avatar, even many (if not most) of the positive reviews for the movie admit that they were strung along purely by the visuals and that the story and characters were bland at best. I'm not prideful enough to refuse to admit when i'm wrong about a movie, but I suspect the sequels have a chance of under-performing the original at the box office (and perhaps regarding critical feedback now that people have cooled off on being wowed by the visuals). Unless Cameron can create better written stories and characters to entice people beyond the visuals.

 

[danlb_2000]

Seems like a major flaw in the survey if that's the case. Magic Kindom and Epcot are the really only 2 full day park experiences, the rest have the ability to use the park hopper.

Not really a flaw, the TEA survey is what it is. There is so much more to understanding how a good a theme park is performing then a simple attendance number. The report give a nice overview of trends, but really doesn't try to provide all the details.

 

[maxairmike]

If you really think IOA had 0% growth last year, I have some beachfront property in Wyoming you should look at. That number is just...not believable. It may not have had a noticeable increase, but there's no way on earth there wasn't any increase in visitor count whatsoever. Maybe the increase wasn't statistically significant (less than 1%, I'd allow that, given the natural order to experience Hogwarts Express is Diagon to Hogsmeade), however I find it almost dishonest to not allow for any increase in attendance whatsoever. Even then, considering the nature of the addition that Diagon is, making it logical to see that area first and then hopping to IOA via the HE, suggesting that minimal growth (it wasn't 0%) is an indication of the IP being a flash in the pan or the park as a whole being a problem...that is truly being intellectually dishonest.

 

[CaptainAmerica]

Really? Having a competitors product leap frog 3 of your stalwarts in one move should at least raise an eyebrow.

No, a park in Osaka causes no consternation if it jumps an Orlando park. That's like worrying that Furious 7 had a higher box office than Monsters University. The comparison has zero value.

 

[Andrew C]

I am confused on one thing. Do people feel it is a good strategy for Disney to be building attractions in their WDW parks as quickly as Universal is? And if you believe this, why? Is it necessary for them to match Universal's pace?

 

[doctornick]

If I recall, Avatar is opening in "stages". The 2017 date is just for the first phase. And since WDW construction seems to have that weird time-warp thing where time moves much slower for them than the rest of the world, I have a feeling "early 2017" is going to be pushed back at some point in the near future. The Disney Blog will spin it as "to bring you the very best magical experience..."

@articos just indicated in the Avatar forum that Pandora will open all at once.

As to the actual opening date, we probably won't know for sure until closer, but given the work done to date, it doesn't seem like the announced "first half 2017" target is unreasonable even by Disney's slow standards.

 

[Disneyhead'71]

No, a park in Osaka causes no consternation if it jumps an Orlando park. That's like worrying that Furious 7 had a higher box office than Monsters University. The comparison has zero value.

And the fact that USJ jumped over 3 Disney parks to be the first non-Disney park to crack the Top 5 Worldwide isn't significant?